UWO Law hosted the 2009 BLG Client Counselling Competition. The winners this year were Andrea Yau and Jesse Mighton.

Finalists included Cassandra Tarrataca and Ryan Venables, Adam Somogyi and Mike Lickver, Kathryn Shani and Brittany Taylor and Ronald Fichter and Katie Sokol.

Omar Ha-Redeye played a client in the competition, which he won in 2007.

Omar Ha-Redeye participated in the 2009 Borden Ladner Gervais Labour and Employment Law moot and finished as a finalist, a second-place runner up in the competition.

This year’s competition addressed a hypothetical appeal of the Supreme Court of Canada’s decision in Evans v. Teamsters Union No. 31, which centered around wrongful dismissal and the duty to mitigate damages by returning to work for an employer.

The Health Law section of the Ontario Bar Association hosted an event on Critical Issues in Health Law: Case Law and Legislation Updates.

The event was co-hosted by Nyranne S. Martin and Michele M. Warner, both from Borden Ladner Gervais LLP.

Richard Steinecke of Steinecke Maciura LeBlanc, Barristers & Solicitors, spoke about Recent Amendments to the Regulated Health Professions Act.

Nina Bombier of Lenczner Slaght Royce Smith Griffin LLP provided an overview of Gore v. College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario and talked about some of the upcoming statutes that could transform investigatory powers of the colleges.

Barbara J. Walker-Renshaw of Borden Ladner Gervais LLP presented her perspective on the 2008 SCC decision, Mustapha v. Culligan of Canada Ltd., and its implications in damages for mental distress.

Anne E. Posno, also of Lenczner Slaght Royce Smith Griffin LLP, discussed the duty of care to a fetus in two cases, Bovington v. Hergott and Paxton v. Ramji.

Finally, Tanya M. Goldberg of Borden Ladner Gervais LLP and Megan B. McPhee of Kim Orr Barristers P.C. provided different perspectives on public health class actions, such as SARS and Maple Leaf.

Notes are available at Slaw.

Omar Ha-Redeye won the 2007 Borden Ladner Gervais Client Counselling Competition with his partner, Amelia Phillips-Lewis.

The purpose of the competition is to develop students’ skills in interviewing and counselling clients. Practising lawyers assess the competitors and other students play the role of clients.

The other 2007 finalists included: Emily Hassin and Linsey Rains, Maciek Piekosz and Michael Beeforth, Ryan McKeen and Raj Kehar, Morgan Borins and Nathalie Freiman.

The competition is judged by lawyers from BLG.  This year the following lawyers participated: Halla Elias, Rick Morelli, Kammy Digambar, Robin Squires, Farah Ismail, Oneal Banerjee, Margot Finley, Doug Smith and Melanie De Wit.